


The Cure

by ExpressAndAdmirable



Series: The Heroes of Light [40]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Dungeons & Dragons - All Media Types, Final Fantasy I
Genre: Airships, Angst and Romance, Artificial Intelligence, Drow, F/F, Technology, Tiefling
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-01-02
Packaged: 2019-02-26 16:19:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13239480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExpressAndAdmirable/pseuds/ExpressAndAdmirable
Summary: Lux and Sol are unfamiliar with the technology of their new airship, the Highwind. (Featuring art!)





	The Cure

**Author's Note:**

> Included is a lovely sketch of Lux and Sol, drawn by Sol's player @b-e-m-l-t on Tumblr.

An airship. A ship designed for sky travel, fuelled by floatstone, containing a disembodied intelligence and captained by some former(?) version of Morgan. And somehow, that wasn’t the oddest thing they had discovered that day.

Aviva looked at her pile of discarded clothing with a beleaguered sigh. They still reeked of purple worm; for that matter, so did her hair, her skin, and the entirety of her equally exhausted Drow. Haluei’en was crouched before the pieces of armour she had scattered on the floor of their newly-claimed stateroom, dipping a rag into a bucket of water and wiping the ichor from the metal. She would be occupied awhile. One extra minute would make little difference. Aviva knelt behind her, wrapping her arms around her waist and resting her forehead between her shoulder blades. Halei paused, steady on her feet, and pressed one wet hand over the Tiefling’s.

They had spent the evening distracting Morgan with smiles and softly-spoken stories, all of them trying to avoid thinking about the unknown truths hiding within their little Gnome. Their words long spent, the taller women had retired to their room to finish their cleaning and exist in the comfort of each other’s silence. There were yet no answers to their questions and asking would do little but worry them. There would be many more words in the morning.

For a few long moments, Aviva concentrated on her love’s heartbeat, matching her breathing to its inexorable steadiness. Then she released her, leaving a soft kiss on her shoulder as she rose. Halei squeezed the Tiefling’s hand before it retreated and returned to her task.

Surveying the room, Aviva grimaced at her filthy clothes. She had soap and a washboard in their supplies, but she needed a second bucket. There was an alcove in the wall to one side of the bed, containing a large mirror, an empty waist-high shelf and a door on either side facing one another. She hoped one of them was a supply closet. Treading lightly, she manoeuvred around Halei’s project to investigate.

Behind one door was a private privy, as pristine and untouched as the rest of the ship. Not what she had expected, but a blessing. What she found behind the other door was far more baffling; panelled in heavily lacquered wood, the room was similar in size to the privy, with what looked like a tiny sewer drain in the centre of the floor. A strange metal device with holes like a cooking sieve jutted from the top of the far wall, below which sat a round, ornate handle with an arrow notched into the bottom. It, too, appeared to have never been used. Yet another mystery.

Part of her wondered if she should have the room checked for traps, but she suspected there would be none. The ship seemed, for all intents and purposes, to have been designed specifically for them, so it stood to reason the room was there to aid them in some way. Curiously, she stepped inside and turned the handle.

A jet of cold water erupted from the nozzle overhead, catching her full in the face. With a spluttering, dismayed yelp, she wrenched the handle back in the opposite direction. The water stopped.

“Aviva?!” The Tiefling turned to see Haluei’en at the door, her eyes wide. “What happened?”

“I’m… not sure,” Aviva answered, blinking in shock as her tunic dripped onto the wooden floor. She pointed to the sieve-like device. “I turned the handle and water came out.”

Poking her head through the doorframe, Halei regarded the apparatus suspiciously. “What is this used for? It looks like it belongs in an abattoir. Why is it attached to a bedroom?”

“Well that’s cheery.” Aviva tilted her head upward. “Highwind, what is this room?”

“This room is a shower,” came the tinny, artificial reply.

Aviva glanced at her partner, who shrugged. She addressed the intelligence again. “What is its purpose?”

“It is designed for upright personal bathing. Once activated, the dial on the wall within the shower controls the temperature of the water. Please allow additional time for the water to heat properly once the desired temperature has been selected.” The voice fell silent.

Aviva looked at the handle, this time noticing the tiny marks carved into the wall around it. “Huh.” After a moment of thought, she turned to Halei. “I’m going to try it.”

The Drow’s frown deepened. “Why?” She had eyed the food generator in the dining area with a similar expression.

“Because I was eaten by, and ejected from, a giant worm today, and I’m officially tired of smelling like that riveting experience.” Stepping out of the shower room, she untied her wet tunic and shrugged the fabric off her shoulders. “If it works for bodies, maybe we can clean clothes in it too.” Laying the garment on the shelf beneath the mirror to dry, she waited for Halei to shift, then made her way to the bed and rummaged in her pack for their soap. “Want to try it with me?”

“I think not,” Halei replied, arms folded and one white eyebrow arched. “But I’ll be listening in case something goes wrong.”

Huffing a soft laugh, Aviva shrugged. “Suit yourself.” As Halei returned to her place on the floor, the Tiefling shimmied out of her trousers and approached the shower room once again. Carefully positioning herself outside the line of fire, she turned the handle, dipping a hand into the stream and adjusting until the water was hot. She took a deep breath and stepped inside.

Aviva had never experienced the heavens, but she was willing to bet a hot shower was at least somewhat similar. She relaxed her shoulders, letting the heat of the water melt away the day’s tension with a soft sigh. Setting the soap bar on a shallow shelf built into the wall to her left, she took her time combing the bubbles through her hair and washing them out again. The Platinum Dawn was going to feel like a rowboat compared to this.

“Halei, sunshine… You have _got_ to try this.”

“Oh?”

“It’s like a hot spring and a waterfall had a child, and then sent it directly to heaven.”

From somewhere beyond the shower, Halei snorted. “That’s a ringing endorsement.” Her head appeared in the doorframe, her not altogether innocent appreciation giving way to unabashed mistrust as her eyes travelled from the Tiefling to the nozzle. “Heaven, hm?”

“Absolutely,” Aviva responded without hesitation. “In fact, I may never come out, so if you want to see me again, you’ll have to come in.”

“Sounds like a hostage situation.” Halei fixed the water with narrowed eyes, then sighed in mock defeat. “Alright,” she murmured, her expression softening into a tired smile. “Your judgment’s never steered me wrong before.” She crossed her arms and pulled her tunic over her head. Aviva waited. When the Drow had discarded the last of her clothing, Aviva reached for her hand and guided her under the water. She watched Halei’s shoulders settle, her neck lengthening, her breath escaping in a slow exhale. “Oh.”

Aviva smiled impishly. “See?”

“Yes. I see.”

“So we’re moving in here, yeah?”

“Strongly considering it.” Halei leaned her head back, a small, contented rumble escaping her throat as Aviva lathered soap into her hair. She slipped her arms around the Tiefling’s waist, drawing her close. “How are you feeling?”

“Worried, as always. But alright.” Turning their bodies slightly, Aviva let the water rinse the suds away. “We’ve done all we can tonight; we’ll look for answers tomorrow, and we’ll go from there.” Taking Halei’s face in both hands, she placed a gentle kiss on the Drow’s lips. “I’ll focus on other things tonight.”

“Oh?” Halei smirked, her eyes opening just a sliver.

Aviva blinked in confusion, then grinned as she realised her phrasing. “We’re already here,” she offered smoothly. “Why not appreciate heaven?”

The corner of Haluei'en’s mouth curved up further as her hands spread at the small of Aviva’s back. “Why not indeed.”

**Author's Note:**

> Title song by Lady Gaga.
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr at @expressandadmirable for a proper table of contents for the Heroes campaign, commissioned character art, text-based roleplay snippets and more!


End file.
